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Lee Gyu-lee

Korea Times Business Reporter

Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.

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Tech & Science

Samsung SDS showcases global digital logistics solutions at Manifest 2026

Samsung SDS took the stage at Manifest  2026, one of the world’s largest supply chain and logistics technology events, to spotlight its global digital logistics push, unveiling its tech-driven supply chain solutions. The event, held in Las Vegas from Monday through Wednesday (local time), brought together leading companies and technology executives across the global supply chain and logistics sector to discuss emerging technologies and market trends. This year’s conference drew about 7,200 attendees, including shippers, logistics solution and service providers, startups and investors. At its exhibition booth, Samsung SDS showcased its logistics platform Cello Square, which provides an end-to-end logistics workflow. It enables users to manage tasks from quoting and booking to billing and settlement through a single interface. The company also introduced its tech-driven logistics services covering ocean and air freight, as well as ground transportation, warehousing and localized distribution. “Manifest 2026 served as a key platform to showcase the company’s digital logistics por

Feb 11, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Samsung SDS showcases global digital logistics solutions at Manifest 2026
Tech & Science

KT posts earnings surge on property gains, AI-cloud push

KT sharply expanded earnings last year, delivering solid top‑line growth on the back of artificial intelligence (AI)‑cloud businesses and one-off real estate gains, despite the recent hacking weighing on its fourth-quarter margins. The company announced it posted revenue of 28.24 trillion won ($19.34 billion) last year, up 6.9 percent year-on-year, while operating profit jumped 205 percent to 2.47 trillion won. The sharp profit increase was largely driven by gains from property development and leasing business with projects in Daejeon and northern Seoul, alongside improved profitability across group-wide cloud, data center and platform units. However, its fourth quarter profit was partly weighed down by nonrecurring costs tied to the company’s response to the security breach that surfaced in September. The costs, including free universal subscriber identity module replacement, contract termination fee waiver and related security measures, compressed margins late in the year. “We apologize to customers, shareholders and investors for causing concerns with the 2025 security inciden

Feb 10, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
KT posts earnings surge on property gains, AI-cloud push
Tech & Science

Hanwha Aerospace, KAI to jointly develop air-launched weapons

Hanwha Aerospace and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) are joining forces to develop advanced airborne weapons, including a new long-range air-to-air missile, for use on Korean-built aircraft. Hanwha Aerospace announced Tuesday that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with KAI on Monday during the World Defense Show (WDS), taking place through Thursday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Under the agreement, the two companies will integrate air-launched weapon systems on KAI’s twin-engine fighter, the KF-21 Boramae, and the light combat aircraft FA-50. “We are confident that by combining our experience in executing a wide range of missile development programs — from air-to-air and air-to-ground to surface-to-air — with KAI’s expertise in integrated fighter systems, we can achieve our goal of developing fully domestic air-launched weapons,” Hanwha Aerospace CEO Son Jae-il said. “Building on this foundation, we aim to help defend South Korea’s airspace, earn the trust of customers worldwide and support the sustainable growth of K-defense.” The two companies also agreed to purs

Feb 10, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Hanwha Aerospace, KAI to jointly develop air-launched weapons
Politics

Korea bets on swift legislative action to head off US tariffs threat

The government sees a clear window to avert a potential U.S. tariff increase, Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan said Monday, adding that he expects the swift passage of a special bill to implement Korea’s investment package for the United States could persuade Washington to defer the hike. The minister stressed that Seoul is prioritizing passage of the special bill, with bipartisan discussions underway and approval targeted for early March, as it views legislative delays as the key obstacle to easing the trade friction. The National Assembly established a special committee to handle legislation for Seoul's investment commitment to the U.S. as part of the trade negotiations last year. “The main cause (of the hike threat) is delays in passing the bill,” Kim said during a press briefing at Government Complex Sejong. “If the special bill passes in March, we believe there is a high possibility that the tariff hike could be postponed or withdrawn, since U.S. President Donald Trump cited that issue as the main reason for the increase.” Last month, Trump announced that he would raise tari

Feb 9, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Korea bets on swift legislative action to head off US tariffs threat
Companies

Korea bets swift legislation can head off US tariff hike

The government sees a clear window to avert a potential U.S. tariff increase, Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan said Monday, adding that he expects the swift passage of a special bill to implement Korea’s investment package for the United States could persuade Washington to defer the hike. The minister stressed that Seoul is prioritizing passage of the special bill, with bipartisan discussions underway and approval targeted for early March, as it views legislative delays as the key obstacle to easing the trade friction. The National Assembly established a special committee to handle legislation for Seoul's investment commitment to the U.S. as part of the trade negotiations last year. “The main cause (of the hike threat) is delays in passing the bill,” Kim said during a press briefing at Government Complex Sejong. “If the special bill passes in March, we believe there is a high possibility that the tariff hike could be postponed or withdrawn, since U.S. President Donald Trump cited that issue as the main reason for the increase.” Last month, Trump announced that he would raise tari

Feb 9, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Korea bets swift legislation can head off US tariff hike
Tech & Science

Naver to supercharge e-commerce with AI after record growth

Naver is doubling down on its fast-growing e-commerce business this year by rolling out artificial intelligence (AI)-powered shopping tools, after the segment emerged as one of the top contributors to the company’s record-breaking earnings. The company posted its biggest annual earnings last year, with revenue climbing 12.1 percent year-on-year to about 12.04 trillion won ($8.42 billion) and operating profit rising 11.6 percent to 2.21 trillion won. The e-commerce division was a standout, accounting for more than 30 percent of total sales for the first time. Sales in the segment jumped 26.2 percent year-on-year to 3.69 trillion won, fueled by a combination of advanced recommendation technology on the Naver Plus Store platform and users switching from rival Coupang following a massive data breach. Positioning the business as a core growth engine and strategic test bed for AI-driven services, Naver is preparing to infuse generative AI into its e-commerce stack this year — from smarter search and recommendation engines to automated ad-targeting and seller support tools — as it seeks

Feb 9, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Naver to supercharge e-commerce with AI after record growth
Tech & Science

Top tech firms ban OpenClaw over security breach fears

Major Korean tech companies, including Kakao, Naver and Karrot Market, are moving to restrict the use of the popular artificial intelligence (AI) agent OpenClaw within corporate networks due to the rising concerns about security and data privacy. The move reflects mounting global caution around the autonomous agent that is capable of performing human-like tasks without direct supervision. OpenClaw is a self-hosted, open-source AI agent designed to act as the “hands” of a large language model. While large language models such as OpenAI's ChatGPT or Google's Gemini serve as the brain that understands and reasons, OpenClaw carries out real-world actions, such as browsing the web, editing files, running system commands and interacting with online services through modular add-ons. It rose to prominence after it was first introduced last November as an early-stage AI agent. However, concerns have grown that it can access sensitive corporate data or personal information, and that such access can create the potential for data leaks, system manipulation and cyberattacks. Kakao, Naver and Karr

Feb 8, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Top tech firms ban OpenClaw over security breach fears
Companies

Samsung chairman joins world leaders at 2026 Winter Olympics gala

Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong is leveraging the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics as a stage to strengthen his global network with world leaders. Lee joined the International Olympic Committee (IOC) gala dinner on Thursday (local time) to mark the opening of the Games, representing Samsung Electronics as the only Korean company in the committee’s top-tier sponsor program. The event gathered world leaders, including Italian President Sergio Mattarella, U.S. Vice President JD Vance, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and Polish President Karol Nawrocki, along with top executives from global firms, including TCL Chairman Li Dongsheng. An industry insider said the IOC gala dinner goes beyond a social gathering, serving as a venue for back-channel diplomacy where global political and business issues are discussed in private. “Lee’s attendance underscores Samsung’s global leadership and Korea’s growing influence in sports diplomacy,” the official said. This is not Lee’s first entry into Olympic diplomacy. He has also previously been involved at the Par

Feb 8, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Samsung chairman joins world leaders at 2026 Winter Olympics gala
Tech & Science

SK Telecom earnings reel from data breach as LG Uplus posts solid performance

SK Telecom took a huge hit in its 2025 earnings as it continued to recover from the fallout of a major cybersecurity incident last April, while LG Uplus ended on a high note, logging solid growth across its mobile and infrastructure businesses. SK Telecom reported a sharp drop, despite its growing momentum in artificial intelligence (AI). It announced Thursday that its net income for 2025 tumbled 73 percent to 375.1 billion won ($256.29 million), down from about 1.39 trillion won a year earlier. Operating profit slid 41.1 percent year-on-year to 1.07 trillion won, while revenue fell 4.7 percent to 17.1 trillion won. The steep earnings drop underscores the damage from last year’s data breach and subsequent efforts to recover customer trust. The company explained that subscribers for its 5G mobile plan reached 17.49 million as of the end of last year, up about 230,000 from the third quarter. "In 2025, our mobile network operator business focused on addressing changes to the business environment caused by the cybersecurity incident,” the company’s Chief Financial Officer Park Jong-se

Feb 5, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
SK Telecom earnings reel from data breach as LG Uplus posts solid performance
Companies

Musinsa to open 1st standalone store for affordable cosmetic brand

Fashion platform Musinsa is expanding beyond apparel into the budget-friendly beauty market, opening the first standalone store for its cosmetic brand, Musinsa Standard Beauty, on Feb. 12 at Hyundai Department Store Mokdong in western Seoul. The 30-square-meter shop will mark the brand’s first dedicated physical space exclusively for its beauty line, showcasing around 20 of its key products. The company plans to use the store to gauge consumer response before deciding whether to expand to additional locations. The launch signals the company’s aggressive push into the budget beauty market, where competition has been intensifying as major retailers, including Olive Young, Lotte Mart and Emart, race to capture cost-conscious consumers. The market has been dominated by Asung Daiso with cosmetics priced between 1,000 won ($0.69) and 5,000 won, driving rapid growth in recent years. According to the company, sales in its cosmetics category surged 85 percent year-on-year in 2023 and 144 percent in 2024, followed by another 70 percent increase last year. Musinsa ramped up its push into low-pri

Feb 4, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
Musinsa to open 1st standalone store for affordable cosmetic brand
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